July 8-15, Wine tasting and gardens

Sorry I've been posting weekly, time just flies while we are here and it's hard to find the time to sit and write a blog. Monday was another day of class and Auntie Shereen provided us with some delicious Indian meatball sandwiches. Later on during class we had a man from the MK of the ANC come and speak to us. We were told before he came that many of these men are secretive about what they have done because it's government related. I had a hard time understanding a lot that he said, but what I did understand was extremely interesting.  (P.S. - we were just informed this week that he passed away unexpectedly from TB.) The rest of the night was quiet for me. Some of my roommates went out but I decided to stay in and have a night to myself. The rest of the week was pretty uneventful. Wednesday night all of us girls went to Taste of Asia for dinner. I never usually eat buffets but it looked good in the moment. I regretted my decision later when I was feeling a little sick. Friday, Matt and Jenny came to work with Boyd and I. I felt bad that it wasn't as exciting as they may have wanted it to be. I sadly have an office job so it's not too interesting to them unless they actually do the work. We did go to The Deli for lunch though (since it's Boyd and I's favorite place). When we got home from work Allison helped me do a Bohemian braid in my hair, which I thought looked really cool.

Later that evening we went down to Sea Point to watch the sunset before dinner. It was absolutely beautiful and I also found some really cool shells while walking on the beach. We had dinner at Ristorante Posticino, which obviously is Italian. It was extremely authentic and I had some amazing wine there as well. If any of my readers are from Cleveland than you would have felt right at home in this restaurant. It made me think of Little Italy, and that made me a little homesick. Saturday morning we got up early to go to the Old Biscuit Mill for brunch. Biscuit Mill is like a giant food market. They had some clothing stands (where I got a super cute pink dress for $10), but most of the market was delicious and unique foods. I, of course, got samosas and I also got a shwarma. Shwarmas are like pita pockets with whatever your little heart desires in them. It started to rain while we were there, so Allison and I took cover under a tent where a live band was playing. It was like a modern folk band, and extremely fun to listen to, especially when they played songs I knew. Later we went home to nap before the STORMERS GAME!!!!! I was looking forward to going to a rugby match for awhile and was excited to learn more about the sport. Sadly, Boyd got the times mixed up and we got there 2 hours early. I didn't mind too much though because we got to tailgate, and also meet some of Matt's friends from the states. Once the game started, some of my roommates went to the bars, and the rest of us stayed to watch the game. I sat next to Boyd the entire game so he could explain the game to me. By halftime I felt like I knew what was really happening and I got to cheer the team on. I felt like a part of the community. My boyfriend has really made me into a sports fanatic and I normally try and watch the Browns games every Sunday at home. Rugby really made me think of Sunday football, so it was extremely fun for me. Luckily, the Stormers won, and by quite a lot!

 

Sunday our director took us on a wine tour at Groot Constantia. We began the day with a meal at one of their fabulous restaurants. I got a steak for the first time since being here, which was absolutely perfect, and some bruschetta. We then got to go on a tour of the winery. I was extremely proud of myself for knowing so much about wine, but I guess I got that lovely information from my parents. Good wine has always be a must in our house so I knew all of the tricks and trades of wine tasting and such. We got to taste 5 different wines, and of course I loved the most expensive one (great taste buds for wine I guess). Sadly I couldn't ship any to my parents because the shipping cost was just ridiculous. I did, however, find a distributor in Florida that sells their wine.YAYYYY. After our wine tasting we went to see the original house built on the vineyard, as well as the building that housed the carriages. It amazed me how simply, but elegantly they lived.

The following Monday, instead of class, we got to go to the Company Gardens. We got a guided tour of The South African Jewish Museum. It was interesting to learn about how and why the Europeans Jewish people immigrated to South Africa. The only downfall was that she bombarded us with information, so it was difficult to remember it all. Afterward, we went to a little Greek restaurant for lunch, and I most definitely got an eggplant pita. I don't think I need to even explain how good it was. We then went to the National Gallery, the countries art museum. The artwork was beautiful, and being an artist, it was great for me to have that experience and to see their styles of work. The gardens were absolutely beautiful and we got to explore them for a bit after the gallery. Next on our agenda was St. George's Cathedral (Archbishop Desmond Tutu's "home"). I always love going to cathedrals, especially because I'm a pretty spiritual person. I was raised Catholic so I felt very at home there. Finally, we walked around George's Mall for awhile, which was more or so like an outdoor craft and clothes market. I got my final gifts for my family and boyfriend and then we made our way home. I was happy that I was able to end my week/begin my week at the Company Gardens

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xoxo,

Alexandra